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What You Need to Know

By law, all new homes built in Ontario are provided with a warranty by the builder, this law is called the Ontario New Home Warranties Act & Regulations. Tarion’s role is to ensure that purchasers of new homes receive the coverage they are entitled to under their builder’s warranty. For more information on the act, visit the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act Webpage and for more information about Tarion, who we are and what we do visit our About Us page.

This is the Homeowners' Homepage, it provides a general overview of the warranty, coverage and everything Tarion has to offer new home purchasers and owners. To help you find the information you need, the content on this page and under the menu item titled Homeowners is tailored for you, whereas the menu items under Builders and the Condo Corporations are tailored for those audiences.  

What is the new home warranty?

Pre-Possession (Before you move in)

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Coverage & claims before you move in

Warranty coverage includes financial protection before you take possession. There are four main types of warranty coverage during this period including deposit protection, delayed closing/occupancy coverage, condominium cancellations and financial loss coverage for contract homes. Learn more about each of these by visiting our page outlining your warranty coverage.

Coverage & Claims before you move in

The Pre-Delivery Inspection

A PDI is a thorough walk through led by your builder. It is one of your first opportunities to view your completed home or condo unit before you take possession. The objective of this inspection is to record all items that are incomplete, damaged, missing, inaccessible or not operating properly, and noting them on the builder’s PDI Form to verify that these conditions existed prior to occupancy. Visit our pre-delivery inspection page for more information, including how to prepare for it.

The Pre-Delivery Inspection

Post-Possession (After You Move In)

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Coverage After You Move In

Coverage for freehold, contract, condo units and condo conversions after you take possession is divided into three different time periods: 1, 2 and 7 year with each offering protection against specific items.

Occasionally new home owners face incidental costs as a result of authorized repairs to items in their new home or condominium. In such cases, Tarion may consider providing additional compensation for the incidental costs associated with moving and/or replacing items during the course of a warranted repair being done by, or on behalf of Tarion.

To learn more about what’s included in these time periods, as well as incidental costs, visit our coverage page for homeowners that have already moved into their new home.

Coverage after you move in

What is Not Covered by the Warranty

It is important for homeowners to note what is not covered by the statutory warranty.
The Act sets out a list of exclusions from warranty coverage for Freehold, Contract & Condo Units. Use the options below to better understand what types of homes are not covered, as well as the items and deficiencies that are not covered for each category.

What is not covered by the warranty

The Claims Process

Tarion strongly encourages homeowners to bring any issues to their builders in writing as soon as possible within the applicable warranty coverage period. Builders and Homeowners are also advised to work together to resolve the issues before having to create a claim. We are committed to helping both homeowners and builders by offering support through various channels including early intervention which can be requested at any time.

Tarion provides a standard claims process for freehold homes, contract homes and condo units. We also provide alternative methods to help resolve homeowner claims in the event that they are not resolved during the regular process. For more information on both the regular claims process, and alternative resolution methods, visit our Making & Resolving Warranty Claims page.

Making & resolving warranty claims

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Tools, Articles & Alerts Tailored for Homeowners

Visit Your Learning & Resources Hub

What you'll find in your learning & resources hub

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Learning Tools

Explore our helpful tools, identify items covered by the warranty with the Home Explorer and learn from our online courses.

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Information & FAQs

Better understand the warranty language & see what questions other purchasers and homeowners are asking.

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Alerts & Advisories

Learn more about what's going on with our recent updates and alerts that matter most to you as a purchaser or homeowner.

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Articles & Videos

Find detailed information, explanations and helpful tips through our blog articles, videos, podcasts and more!